Police chastised for arresting ‘sex-starved’ man after suicide threat

A clinical psychologist at the School of Medical Sciences of the University of Cape Coast, Christian Ackom, has criticised the Police following the arrest of a resident of Assin Kwaata, Joseph Acquah, 38, who had threatened to take his own life over his wife’s refusal to have sex with him for three months.

Joseph Acquah was detained after his wife reported his intentions to commit suicide to the police.

The Police Commander told journalists after Mr. Acquah’s arrest that he would be put before the courts since suicide was against the law.

However, speaking to Citi News, Christian Ackom said Joseph Acquah needs professional attention from psychiatrists and would not be helped by being incarcerated.

“This idea of punishing people for attempting to commit suicide is misplaced. The thing is the law is very old and we have been advocating for it to be repealed. The man threatened, it could have been an issue of him being frustrated and it was all a cry for help because according to the story I read, for past three months his wife had denied him sex, ” he said.

According to him, the man’s threat to commit suicide could have been an attempt to get his wife to change her mind.

He argued that the police should have at least considered that possibility and referred the case to a mental facility.

“The issue of suicide is a bit more complex than we think. If the police become trigger-happy and want to rush everybody who have threaten suicide to court to be punished than I think it is not right, because you will not punish someone for having a heart attack and suicide is a mental health condition,” he said.